Frederic Edwin Church biography

Frederic Edwin Church was born on 4 May 1826 in Hartford, Connecticut. At this time, he was best known for painting large panoramic landscapes that often shows mountains, waterfalls, and sunsets and thus he was the central figure in the Hudson River School of American landscape painters.

Niagara Falls by Frederick Edwin Church

He traveled to Arctic and Central and South America and this can be clearly seen in his paintings that depict dramatic natural phenomena.

During the later years of his life, he devoted them to painting classical Mediterranean and Middle Eastern scenes and cityscapes.

Frederic Edwin Church Paintings

He started his career by painting classic Hudson River School scenes of England and New York. He then settled in New York in 1850. He visited South America twice, firstly in 1853 to Quito, Ecuador and secondly in 1857.

Prussian explorer Alexander von Humboldt‘s Cosmos was the inspiration of Church. He married Isabel Carnes after buying a farm in Hudson in 1860. His ability to paint was reduced due to rheumatoid arthritis. He died in 1900.

Frederic Edwin Church Artworks

He has some very popular works of painting such as The Andes of Ecuador (1855) in Reynolda House Museum of American Art, Cotopaxi (1855), Cross in the Wilderness (1857), Morning in the Tropics (1858) in The Walters Art Museum in Baltimore,

Niagara Falls from the American Side (1867), Rainy Season in the Tropics (1866) in Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco and many more.

Frederic Edwin Church-Our Banner in the Sky

This painting was made by Frederic Edwin Church in 1861. It is an oil painting which is a photomechanically produced lithograph. The dimensions of the paintings are 7.5 inches by 11 and three by eight inch. The painting is made in the response to the Confederate attack on Fort Sumter in April 1861.

Frederic Edwin Church painting

It is an artistic as well as a patriotic response. Church made an effort to create an American flag in heaven. It also shows the dynamic part of nature at sunrise. The short brushstrokes make the glow of the clouds more visible.

Frederic Edwin Church-Icebergs

The Icebergs is a luminous painting of Frederic Edwin Church. The monumental painting was first created and exhibited in 1861. but then he modified it after two years.

The looming masses of this painting brought much mission to tragic ends have slowly melted into increasingly open seas.

Frederic Edwin Church Olana

During 1826-1900, Frederic Edwin Church had a home which is now Olana State Historic Site. It consists of the wide view of the Hudson River Valley, the Catskill Mountains, and the Taconic Range.

Heart of Andes by Frederic Edwin Church painting

The centerpiece of this place is eclectic villa which has many styles which are difficult to categorize, and this overlooks parkland and a working farm which is designed by the artist. In 1965, it was designated as a National Historic Landmark.

Frederic Edwin Church Facts

The main building of this architectural masterpiece is designed by Calvert Vaux who was an architect.

The things used in this building such as stone, brick, and polychrome-stenciled villa are a mixture of different style such as Victorian, Persian and Moorish styles. It also has the last studio of Church.